Saturday, February 27, 2010

We are home. We thank God that our little adventure into the world of PICU and Pediatric Cardiology (and its scary, scary procedures) was quick for all and seemingly painless for Miss Mariana...but mostly we're thanking God that it's over!

Everyone at the hospital was so nice and made sure we were well taken care of - we even had a room in the clubhouse where the family could stay - still, there is something about my own couch (the one I really can't stand and would love to replace) in my own living room after 48 hours in and around the hospital that feels like heaven!

To look at Mari right now you'd never guess that yesterday she had a needle inserted into her groin through which a catheter was threaded through her blood vessels into her heart so that the doctor could place a relatively large [12 mm] device made of nickel and titanium inside her heart to block the hole that isn't supposed to be there. She's one tough chic! It was cool to see the device on the echocardiogram today...bizarre to think it got there through a catheter, though.

To look at me, on the other hand, you can DEFINITELY see that I've only had about 6-7 hours of sleep in the last couple of nights...my couch is calling.

Friday, February 26, 2010

Okay, so that may be just a tad bit biased but it's okay, you can admit it...Mari's pretty adorable in her little hospital gown, isn't she? I will admit that this whole experience was quite stressful but now, in the quiet aftermath of the day, I am looking back on a day that went way smoother than I could have dared to hope. Now that the anesthesia has worn off and she is getting back to normal I can breathe again and can't help but feel that we are SO BLESSED!

So here's the rundown for those of you who are interested: we came down to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital yesterday afternoon for pre-op and bloodwork. This morning we reported back to the hospital at o'dark-thirty and she was admitted to the Pediatric Heart Station. A few last minute tests and a confirmation blood sample and a couple of doctor conferences later, they gave her some meds to help ease her into the process of anesthesia. (Interestingly enough, a few minutes after they gave her the meds we were all struck with how eerily similar she appeared to when we first met her in Colombia. In a matter of minutes she had little control over her limbs, she couldn't hold her trunk steady, and she basically just slumped in Grandma's lap. It reminded us all of how far she has come in the last six months, and it gave us all a good laugh since she was clearly loopy from the meds.)

Then, we all got dressed in our Oompa Loompa suits -- note to self: wearing a comfy dress to the hospital is not such a good idea when you have to don an Oompa Loompa suit! -- and walked her down to the cath lab where the rest of the cardiac team was waiting to do the cardiac catheterization and other tests necessary to implant a device to repair her ASD (Atrial Septal Defect). We kissed her goodbye and then we had to leave. That was VERY HARD to do. For the next couple of hours all we could do was wait and pray. All I kept saying was "Lord, you're in control. You love her more than even I do so please take care of her and bring her safely through this!" After about a million years we got word that the procedure was successful and she was going to be on her way to recovery soon.

The nurses got a good laugh as I almost knocked Bill out of the way to get to Mari when we were finally able to see her. Pepe and Yiaya (Bill's parents) brought Katie and Kyle to visit and eventually took Memaw back home with them. Fast forward several hours of a loopy, post-anesthesia baby and all of a sudden the fog lifted and Mari was back, in full force and effect! I can't even tell you how great it was to see the sparkle back in her eyes! So here we are, spending the night in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. We've been in the PICU since Mari came out of recovery. They were going to move us to the Step Down unit but there isn't a room available so we'll just stay put in PICU overnight. Tomorrow, she will see Dr. C again, have another echocardiogram to check the placement of the device, among other things, and, God willing, we will be able to go home tomorrow morning.

I can't thank you guys enough for the prayers and well wishes that keep coming! Nothing is impossible with God and the power of prayer is abundantly clear! God bless you all!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

This cute little bundle of perfection is Riley Jane, my brand new niece! Riley is one of the very few babies who actually made her grand entrance on her due date and she is TWO WEEKS OLD TODAY! We love you Riley Jane!

Sunday, February 14, 2010

And, yeah...in yet another show of my non-tech-savviness (not to mention my habit of using words of questionable existence when necessary) you'll note I can't figure out how to rotate the video so you see it at the correct angle. Cock your head a little to the side or just imagine it is a horizontal image. You'll at least smile or you are a total curmudgeon (which is another of my favorite words, just in case you're wondering)! I've said it before, I'll say it again: